[CarolynS]

Parkinson's community,

Yesterday's mid-term elections are certainly going to create something of a sea change in the nation's capital. So, I thought it would be useful to give you a brief analysis of what the election results will mean for the Parkinson's community. Of course, how this will all settle out needs to evolve over the coming weeks – some congressional races are not even decided yet – so please take this as a quick first look at what the changes mean.

Lame-Duck Session
Congress will return on November 15 for a lame-duck session, probably lasting just two or three weeks. (A “lame-duck session” is one that occurs after an election but before the new Congress is sworn in.) Yesterday’s election results make it much less likely that the lame-duck session will address much substantive legislation – even though funding for government agencies, expiring tax cuts, our Parkinson’s national data system bill, stem cells, the Medicare physician fee fix, and other important issues are hanging in limbo. Watch for most issues to get kicked into next year.

Funding for Research
Further delay of final congressional decisions on government funding would be a mixed bag at best for Parkinson’s research. It is possible that Congress could decide to fund the entire Fiscal Year 2011 through a “continuing resolution” at 2010 levels. Unfortunately, that would mean the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would not receive its proposed $1 billion increase and the new Cures Acceleration Network would not get its planned $50 million to get the program started. A continuing resolution would, however, extend the $25 million for Department of Defense Parkinson’s research program. We will certainly keep you posted.

Committees
With respect to the appropriations committees, both the House and the Senate will need to appoint several new members in the coming weeks. But the good news for us is that Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), a friend of NIH research, will remain as Chairman of the relevant Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, and Representative C.W. Bill Young (R-FL), a friend of the Department of Defense Parkinson’s research program, will become Chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.

With respect to authorizing committees, the Parkinson’s community should also come out pretty well. With Republicans taking control of the House, one of the Parkinson’s Caucus Co-Chairs, Representative Fred Upton (R-MI), is in line to become Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over a great deal of our health legislation. Senator Harkin will remain as Chairman of the Senate HELP Committee, which handles health issues in the Senate.

Congressional Caucus on Parkinson’s Disease
With over 60 newly-elected Members of the House and a dozen freshmen Senators, the new Congress will have a lot of new personalities. That means a host of new members for us to recruit to join the Congressional Caucus on Parkinson’s Disease. The eight current Co-Chairs of the Parkinson’s Caucus – evenly split between four Republicans and four Democrats; four House Members and four Senators – will all remain in place next year. (Caucus Co-Chair Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) was already slated to leave the Senate after his primary defeat in May).

Obviously, everyone in Washington is still analyzing what the election results will mean. PAN will be looking more in depth at what the changes might entail for the Parkinson’s community, both for the remaining weeks of this Congress and for next year, so please stay tuned! And, of course, please feel free to contact me directly with any questions you may have.

Sincerely,

John Schall
Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Parkinson's Action Network (PAN)
Phone: 800-850-4726

[tulip girl]

Hi Digger,
Thank you for your round up for the up coming months. Do you have any idea what has happened with the repeal of the 1996 Dickey - Wicker ammendment on severly limiting ESCR (embryonic stem cell research) and where that is heading to?

TG

[GregD]

So what you are saying is business as usual. Nothing of any real significance has passed the House or Senate for the past 15 years anyhow what is another 6 months to a year.

GregD

[stevem53]

So nothing happens for another two years, and the political ping pong continues

That was one of the reasons why I resigned as PAN coordinator for Rhode Island..Getting a consistant flow of federal funding from Washington is an exercise in futility

[aj04]

The reactions to PAN’s summary of the recent midterm election results here were almost as disappointing as the results themselves.

From Greg D: So what you are saying is business as usual. Nothing of any real significance has passed the House or Senate for the past 15 years anyhow what is another 6 months to a year.

From Steve M: So nothing happens for another two years, and the political ping pong continues

That was one of the reasons why I resigned as PAN coordinator for Rhode Island..Getting a consistant flow of federal funding from Washington is an exercise in futility.

My response to you comes from Winston Churchill: It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.

And from Abbie Hoffman: Democracy is not something you believe in or a place to hang your hat, but it's something you do. You participate. If you stop doing it, democracy crumbles.

PAN staff and volunteer advocates work hard to maintain—and, when possible, increase—funding for PD research through the NIH, DOD, and other governmental agencies that we can partner with on projects that will benefit PD research. This money is not given to “us.” Not just PAN, but the whole community is responsible for making sure the government doesn’t overlook us, that, in fact, they put more money into our concerns.

PAN and its volunteers do much more than lobby for research funds. PAN had a leadership role in seeing that anti stem cell legislation which had passed in the House two years running never made it through the Senate. (The legislation carried a $10 million dollar fine and/or ten years in jail for anyone using human embryonic stem cells for research or treatment—doctors, scientists and patients alike.) PAN played an important role in limiting the damage President Bush caused when he limited federal funding for stem cell research and was there when President Obama lifted the funding restraint. PAN is also at the forefront of the opposition to the current injunction against the NIH funding human embryonic stem cell research.

PAN has been working with the Social Security Administration to facilitate their approval of PD claims.

PAN helped pass (understatement) legislation that made PD a “presumptive” diagnosis for those veterans who came into contact with Agent Orange in Vietnam, making such vets automatically eligible for VA benefits.

PAN has taken the lead in creating the first national, governmental registry of people not only with PD but any neurological disorder.

This and more PAN has accomplished primarily in the years of the Bush Administration. The organization has the professionalism to be able to work within the system regardless of what party is in power. PD is not a partisan disease and its bi- or tri- or omni-partisan profile will only become higher as the population ages.

So, in response to GregD and Steve M’s comments, I would like to say that given that the government does not just give research money to us; and given that we need to be present on more governmental issues than just funding; and given that PAN has worked hard and succeeded in becoming the Parkinson’s community’s official organizational presence in Washington; and given that they are doing a great job (in no small measure due to their respect for and reliance on us—the people whom they represent); and given that, being professionals, they don’t give up after what might be to some an upsetting election; given all that, it is our responsibility if not to join PAN’s efforts at least to recognize their value, hard work, and successes.